Ministries:
Adult | Teens | Children

Pastor's Pen's:
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Sermon Series:
Following Jesus
Earthly Cross
His Name Is
Apostles Creed
Dealing with Feelings
Jonah
Get Real
Promised Land Living

Grace Church
257 Kendall Street
Burlington, WI 53105

(262) 763-3021

Email:
Pastor Scott Carson

Secretary Patti Hall

PASTOR'S PENS 2002

Grace Church of Burlington November 10, 2002 "We are judged by what we finish, not by what we start."      Imagine that you are a world-class concert pianist at the peak of your career, someone who has spent years studying and practicing to develop your art. Your fingers respond instantly to your mental commands, flitting along the keyboard with grace and speed. Then one day you feel a stiffness that wasn’t there before. You go to a doctor, tests are done, and the diagnosis comes back: arthritis. Your fingers are destined to become wooden and crippled. From the heights of success and acclaim you will plunge to oblivion.             That’s exactly what happened to Byron Janis. Within a short time this concert pianist saw arthritis quickly spread to all his fingers, and the joints of nine of them fused. Some people would have never recovered from such a blow, but Janis decided to fight back. He kept his ailment a secret from all but his wife and two close friends. He worked long hours to change his technique. He learned how to use what strengths he had instead of concentrating on his weaknesses. He also used a regimen of medications, acupuncture, ultrasound, and even hypnosis to deal with the pain. His wife learned how to give him therapeutic massages to loosen his stiff joints.             Through hard work and sheer determination, Byron Janis was able to continue his career. He maintained a full concert schedule for twelve years without anyone suspecting. Finally, he told the world at a White House concert in 1985. These days, he is active in fund-raising for the Arthritis Foundation and still plays the piano. He credits faith, and hope, and will for his success and says, "I have arthritis, but it doesn’t have me."             This morning we are concluding our series, Promised Land Living in a Problematic World, our study of the book of Joshua. I trust that you have learned some valuable spiritual lessons that you are seeking to apply to your life. I know that I have.             Obviously, one of the primary characters is Joshua himself. As we conclude today, we will see Joshua passionately concerned about the next generation (Joshua 24), urging them to remain committed to God. He wants them to faithfully serve God as he has faithfully served God.             Joshua is a powerful reminder to us that it is not enough to start well. We must also end well. It is easy to begin well but the true measure of our spirituality is how we end.  Like Joshua, we must determine to persevere.  And Joshua suffered for his faithfulness. He was one of two (Caleb was the other) spies who believed God and trusted that He would give them the Promised Land. The rest of the people were even ready to stone them for their faith. Only Joshua and Caleb survived out of the entire nation and entered Canaan. Joshua knew from personal experience what it was to be true to the end, even when everyone around him as faithless. He knew what it was to persevere, even when it hurt.             The Greek word for persevere is hupomone. In Classical Greece it described the ability of a plant to thrive in a harsh environment, literally in the deserts and rocky slopes. In later Greek and Jewish literature, it was used to refer to the "spiritual staying power" which enabled the faithful to die for their God.             Later this same term was used for the characteristic of a person who is not swerved from their deliberate purpose and retains their faith and piety through even the greatest trials and sufferings. It means to keep continuing forward with an attitude of hope, joy in the heart and a smile on the face even when confronted with unpleasant circumstances and great distresses.             All of us will have trials, valley and difficulties. We will miss out on God’s greatest blessings and rewards though if we do not end well. Like Joshua we must persevere. When we face trials let’s make sure, like Byron Janis, that though we have them they do not have us. May this study have encouraged us to determine anew that we will be faithful like General Joshua until the very end.